It Will Happen

On December 31, I was crouched in a corner of a lodge in Yosemite playing cards and enjoying a beer with my best friend. We–along with a hundred other campers were waiting for the New Year to roll in & I had this distinct feeling in my gut that 2015 was actually going to be the best year ever.

Watching my health blow up & my plans disintegrate shook me. Sometimes I’ve even laughed when I thought about the conviction I had in December that 2015 was going to be the best year ever. Instead this year was starting to look like it might level me.

But I had forgotten about where that conviction came from. Back in Yosemite I had dubbed 2015 the best year ever because I had finally started holding on to the fact that I am a daughter of the ruler of the galaxy and I am particularly & radically loved. That was the reason this year was going to be the best. Because of whose I was, not because things were going to go my way. (And Star Wars VII is coming out so let’s be honest, that’s a definite morale boost.)

If my hope is based on my identity–being God’s cherished kiddo–and not on my circumstances, then nothing that has happened to me or will happen to me can obliterate it.

I am His and He loves me, therefore everything will be orchestrated to be something good and beautiful. Simple.

The title of this post comes from Isaiah 35. The passage talks about this desert bursting into life and whooping for joy over its new growth. It’s a beautiful picture. The whole chapter. After the first mention of the desert’s revitalization in verse one, verse two begins with a simple yet bold, “It will happen!” There is zero room for doubt in that three word phrase. Everything will burst with life. Everything will be made right. It will happen.

Here I am two days away from surgery and alive and feel like I’m going to burst because I’m so thankful. I’m thankful that joy is not dependent on or kin to circumstances. I’m thankful that Jesus loves me with a ferocious and determined yet patient love. I’m thankful He’s constantly showing me His presence and goodness in my life even though I do not deserve it.

I’m thankful that when I doubt, Jesus keeps showing me He is in the business of proving me wrong.

“Imagine the wilderness whooping for joy, the desert’s unbridled happiness with its spring flowers. It will happen! The deserts will come alive with new growth budding and blooming, singing and celebrating with sheer delight…” -Isaiah 35:1-2(ish)